Walking has always been advocated as a beneficial health measure. But recently there has been a surge in participation and interest in so-called "exercise-walking," such that exercise-walking is following in the path of jogging and running as a growing popular physical-fitness activity.
Recent polls show that some 50 million Americans walk for exercise. One great advantage of walking is that it is an appropriate form of exercise for nearly everyone, regardless of age or cardio-vascular condition. Walking serves to strengthen the heart and lungs and to make them operate more efficiently. Walking also improves muscle and skeletal strength, particularly in the legs and lower body.
Walking involves, in one way or another, most of the 650 muscles and 206 bones in the human body. The rythmic arm swing of walking, which serves to help keep the body in balance, is to some extent helpful in toning the chest, shoulder and arm muscles. But the primary strenuous weight-moving exertion of walking is in the leg muscles.
A study by Mostardi, Gandee and Norris, published in the July 1981 Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (pages 332-336), shows significant advantages of strenuous concurrent exercise of both the arms and the legs over strenuous exercise of the legs alone. The advantages of concurrent strenuous arm and leg exercise, over leg exercise alone, are not limited to the obvious benefits to the arm muscles and related skeletal areas.
The study indicated that, with concurrent strenuous exercise of arms and the legs, an equal improvement in maximal aerobic power was achieved with a lower heart rate and with considerably less stress on the heart. It was also found that when strenuous arm work is used in combination with strenuous leg work, there was better progress in reducing arterial blood pressure, increasing the level of conditioning, and improving the overall feeling of well-being.
In the prior art, the use of hand-held weights has been found to enhance the benefits of walking, both in improving the heart and lung functions and in improving muscle and skeletal strength. However, the hand-held weights of the prior art have problems and shortcomings which make them less than satisfactory in providing strenuous arm and upper-body exercise during walking.
More specifically, carrying the hand-held weights of the prior art tends to interfere with the most comfortable walking rhythms. For example, the hands or the weights themselves tend to bump into the thighs of the walker carrying them because they have no support during any portion of the walking-movement cycle other than through the arms and shoulders of the user.
Furthermore, carrying the hand-held weights of the prior art during walking does not require or even naturally encourage any lifting motion or manipulation such as would be helpful for providing strenuous exercise in the arms and upper body. Apart from a well-disciplined effort by a walker, exercise motions would involve strenuous exercise by only a limited number of the muscles in the area. And, then such strenuous exercise tyically will not continue very long apart from application of substantial will power.
Various other things which a walker has carried, such as a cane or a walking stick, are intended for guidance, support and/or style. An implement of that type plays and can play very little role in exercising or in any exercise plan.
In short, there is a need for devices and methods which can provide strenuous exercise of the muscles of the arm and upper body in a natural and convenient way during walking.